The C-141 Starlifter which crashed had been flying from McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey and was en route to RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk when it got caught in a storm.

Peter said: “It crashed only a couple of miles from villages but luckily no one else was hurt. The wing and tail snapped off and the plane fell in three different locations, a mile apart in a triangle.

“It was like a mangled scrapyard. There was nothing left which was recognisable.”

Tuesday’s service was marked by a period of silence and prayers, while three personnel of the original Thorney fire crew which was first on the scene 40 years ago also attended.

The service was held where a big memorial stone was erected 20 years ago, with the names of all the people who perished in the crash engraved on it.

Peter, who can remember several aircraft crashes in the Peterborough area over the years, added: “The Americans are very appreciative of what we are doing.”